Besides three daughters,of one of whom thou art heartlessly depriving me,Iam the mother of this son of thine.If anyone asks thee thy reason for slaying her,tell me,what wilt thou say?or must say it for thee?"It is that Menelaus may recover Helen."An honourable exchange,indeed,to pay a wicked woman's price in children's lives!'Tis buying what we most detest with what we hold most dear.Again,if thou go forth with the host,leaving me in thy halls,and art long absent at Troy,what will my feelings be at home,dost think?when Ibehold each vacant chair and her chamber now deserted,and then sit down alone in tears,making ceaseless lamentation for her,"Ah!my child,he that begat thee hath slain thee himself,he and no one else,nor was it by another's hand.to thy home,after leaving such a price to be paid;for it needs now but a trifling pretext for me and the daughters remaining to give thee the reception it is right thou shouldst receive.Iadjure thee by the gods,compel me not to sin against thee,nor sin thyself.Go to;suppose thou sacrifice the child;what prayer wilt thou utter,when 'tis done?what will the blessing be that thou wilt invoke upon thyself as thou art slaying our daughter?an ill returning maybe,seeing the disgrace that speeds thy going forth.Is it right that Ishould pray for any luck to attend thee?Surely we should deem the gods devoid of sense,if we harboured a kindly feeling towards murderers.Shalt thou embrace thy children on thy coming back to Argos?Nay,thou hast no right.Will any child of thing e'er face thee,if thou have surrendered one of them to death?Has this ever entered into thy calculations,or does thy one duty consist in carrying a sceptre about and marching at the head of an army?when thou mightest have made this fair proposal among the Argives;"Is it your wish,Achaeans,to sail for Phrygia's shores?Why then,cast lots whose daughter has to die."For that would have been a fair course for thee to pursue,instead of picking out thy own child for the victim and presenting her to the Danai;or Menelaus,inasmuch as it was his concern,should have slain Hermione for her mother.As it is,I,who still am true to thee,must lose my child;while she,who went astray,will return with her daughter,and live in happiness at Sparta.If Iam wrong in aught herein,answer me;but if my words have been fairly urged,do not still slay thy child,who is mine too,and thou wilt be wise.
第11章（1 / 3）